The Cowboy Sheriff by Trish Milburn

Author:Trish Milburn
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Romance
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2012-06-27T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Simon stared at Keri as she raced out of the house. The look that had been on her face—he’d never seen anything so sad in his life. In a moment of clarity, he understood his mistake.

“What?” Nathan said in confusion.

“It was Hannah’s first steps, and she missed them.” Simon stood, aware that everyone had gone quiet. He glanced at his mom, and she gave him a slight nod as though she knew what he was thinking. Chances were she did. She was uncanny that way.

He hesitated, thinking he was the last person Keri likely wanted to see, but he didn’t want anyone else going after her, either.

When he stepped outside, he didn’t see her. After a quick scan of the area, he figured she had to be in the barn. With a deep breath, he headed that way. He heard her sniffles as soon as he stepped inside the barn, but it took a couple of moments for his eyes to adjust enough to the dimmer light to see her. She stood at the far end of the barn, her shape a dark silhouette against the glow of the sunlight outside.

Again he considered whether he should approach her, but when he heard her take in a shaky breath it broke his heart. He closed the space between them. He could tell the moment she realized he was there because she stiffened.

“I’m sorry, Keri,” he said. He wanted to touch her, try to somehow comfort her, but he feared that would just make things worse. “I shouldn’t have said anything. Then you wouldn’t have known you missed it.”

Keri shook her head and turned a tear-stained face toward him. “It’s not me who should have seen Hannah’s first steps. Sammi should have been there. She should have been the one Hannah was walking to.”

Not him. He felt as if he’d stolen something precious and there was no way to give it back.

Keri’s hold on what little willpower she had crumbled, and a flood of tears poured from her eyes. “She should be here, not me. She shouldn’t have died and left me all alone!”

Sobs overtook her, and Simon guided her into his arms. She tried to pull away, but he didn’t let her.

“No,” he said next to her ear. “It’s time to let it all out.”

And she did. She cried so hard that her entire body shook with the convulsions. Her hands knotted in the front of his shirt and tears soaked the fabric.

He rubbed his hand over her hair, smoothing it and trying to soothe her pain. When he felt about as helpless as he ever had, he planted a kiss on the top of her head. It was a testament to how much she was hurting that she didn’t notice or comment on what he’d done.

“Why do they all leave me?” she asked, more vulnerable than he’d ever heard her.

He hugged her close. “I don’t know.”

She took a shuddering breath. “I…I’m afraid to love her, afraid she’ll be taken away, too.

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